Artist Playlists
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For a man obsessed with the power of youth, Paul Weller actually improved with age. When he led The Jam, his voice was a sharp bark from a street corner; in The Style Council it was a soulful suburban wail. By the early ‘90s, it had became a warmer, more expressive instrument, fitting his solo material like one of his well-cut suits. Musically, Weller continued to evolve and push against his own past, moving from the shuffling growl of 1995's Stanley Road to more recent No. 1 releases like 22 Dreams and Sonik Kicks. There's soul-infused rock and rock-infused soul, with deviations into psychedelia, pastoral folk and spikier stuff, depending on his ever-changing moods. - Paul Weller's work with The Jam and The Style Council in the '80s helped set the template for how a generation of UK rock acts would sound and swagger. Oasis and Blur couldn't agree on much, but both acts studied Weller's flashy riffs and tales of lad behaviour, while shuffling acts like Ocean Colour Scene and The Bluetones have taken heed of his blue-eyed soul, and punks like Frank Turner tune into his class-conscious lyrics.
- Since his early-'80s stint as the frontman for The Jam, Paul Weller has maintained his position as one of the most forward-thinking figures in the music scene. With The Jam, he combined punk energy and smartly observed character sketches ("The Dreams of Children"), he explored his love of northern soul in The Style Council ("Come To Milton Keynes") and he's continued to push boundaries with his progressive solo work ("Starlite").
- Gifted singer/songwriter Paul Weller came of age leading UK legends The Jam. Since then, he's been mining classic rock, soul and jazz in his music. And it's easy to recognise the songs he listened to growing up: There's jazz (Charles Mingus), soul (Marvin Gaye), pub rock (Dr. Feelgood), folk (Nick Drake), vintage rock (Little Richard), mod (Small Faces) and, of course, The Who.